Darlene Upton Email & Phone Number

30 Victoria, Gatineau Quebec, J8X0B3

Working with a dedicated and professional team leading the establishment of national parks, marine conservation areas, and urban parks in Canada in collaboration with local communities, provinces, territories, Indigenous peoples and environmental groups. Working together to conserve, protect and connect them through work on ecological monitoring, restoration and conservation projects, fire management and law enforcement. Sharing more and more data with Canadians we will be looking at how to engage citizens and partners in the conservation of Canada’s protected areas. Canada is a leader in Conservation and Parks Canada and my team are playing a leadership role internationally.

Ottawa, Ontario

I completed 2 terms, 4 years as the Champion for the National Action Committee for Women. In this role I championed efforts to support women in the Agency and promote a representative workplace. Projects have included a national webinar on parental leave which supports women and men taking a maternity or paternity leave, awareness work and network building. In April 2017 I was appointed as the Champion for the LGBTQ community. I am excited to be in this role and supporting an amazing team who are focused on making Parks Canada an inclusive and welcoming workplace. We have a “Guide to Pride”, Parks Canada 🌈 branded flags, a new “Guide to Supporting Transitioning Employees” and much more. Appointed Champion of Employees with Disabilities April 2021.

Gatineau, Quebec, Canada

Contributing to the strategic leadership of the Parks Canada Agency. Member of the Executive Management Committee and Chair of the Agency Strategic Policy Committee. Responsible for a team of 9 executives leading investment planning, major project deliver ~$700M annually, information and IT management, realty, Agency security, legislative and regulatory affairs, and corporate performance reporting. Regular speaker at the School of Public Service for the New Directors Programme.

Ottawa, Ontario

My former position as EX-03 Executive Director of Waterways in Parks Canada has been expanded to now include responsibilities for Parks Canada's sites across Ontario. In addition to the 7 canals which includes the Rideau Canal and Trent-Severn Waterway in Ontario, and the Lachine Canal in Montreal I have responsibility for the newly established Rouge National Urban Park, 5 National Parks, 2 Marine Conservation Areas, and 37 National Historic Sites. This represents approximately 1000 employees and over $100 million budget. My role will include support for the six Directors of our field and waterway units, strategic advice on a broad range of programs and policies within Parks Canada, and creating and maintaining strategic relationships at a regional level.

Gatineau, Quebec

I acted in this EX-04 role in between the outgoing VP and the newly appointed incoming VP. This role provides policy leadership and expert advice in the area of Indigenous affairs and cultural heritage. During my time I was able to ensure that several strategic files moved forward including the governments initial response to the IUCN Reactive Monitoring Mission to Wood Buffalo National Park, work on several Memorandum to Cabinet, management of the Agency Contributions Program, selection processes for newly appointed members to the Historic Sites and Monuments Board and several other files. This was an excellent opportunity to increase my knowledge within the Agency and test my leadership abilities at the EX-04 level.

Smiths Falls, Ontario

In this EX-03 role my responsibilities included the strategic management of Parks Canada's heritage canals in Ontario and Quebec including the Rideau Canal, Trent-Severn Waterway in Ontario and the Lachine Canal, Ste Anne-de-Bellevue canal, St Ours Canal, Chambly Canal, and Carillion Canal in Quebec. The canals team with an EX-01 and EX-02 Director also included ~450 employees who provide a high level of expertise and professionalism in their work. I was directly responsible for a team of engineers who were focused on large capital projects and the canals Dam Safety Program. The canals budget was ~ $45M with significant additional b-based capital works funding. I worked directly with the tourism industry, municipal partners, and industry organizations such as Boating Ontario and the Ontario Waterpower Association. In 2015 I was honoured to receive the Boating Ontario Gord Blake Visionary Award for leadership within the Marine industry. I also successfully worked with the Ontario Waterpower Association to renew the Agency business relationship for the 26 hydro projects along the canals. I am energized and inspired by what can be accomplished through collaboration and partnerships with others.

Gatineau, Quebec

I was appointed into this EX-02 role for one year to support the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Management Board with the Agency's contribution to the Deficit Reduction Action Plan. I was specifically responsible for coordination of the various elements including all internal communications, and employee support. In addition I developed numerous tools to support the discussions and decisions required. I worked with all Directorates to ensure that key information was available to executives through a shared secured site as well as to employees through an intranet based portal. It was a challenging year however I feel my efforts contributed to minimizing the impact on employees to the extent possible.

Gatineau, Quebec

Following a government decision to arm Parks Canada Park Wardens in 2008 I was responsible for establishing a new Law Enforcement Branch within Parks Canada in this newly created EX-01 position. This new centralized structure was designed to provide a law enforcement service to parks and sites across the country. My responsibilities including leading a team that established new policies, established job requirements followed by significant staffing, acquired side arms and all related equipment, and trained and deployed the new team on time and on budget. Following launch of the new program significant effort was put into monitoring and continual improvement. During my time in this position I worked closely with many enforcement agencies and as a member of the Canadian Natural Resource Law Enforcement Cheifs I participated in discussions and the development of policies impacting natural resource law enforcement across the country.

Masters Of Science, Zoology

Natural Sciences, Ecology Focus

Honours Bachelor Of Outdoor Recreation, Tourism Focus